Keith D. Smith Concrete Contractor, Inc. had the pleasure of hosting a group of 19 seventh grade students from Emory H. Markle Middle School on March 30, 2022. This is a part of the programming at EHMMS to give students exposure to career areas of interest via real life community business visits. Students traveled through two stations during their ninety minute visit, where they learned about Keith Smith Concrete as a business, work place safety, services provided, and what a day in the life of a concrete tradesman looks like. They also had the opportunity to get on, manipulate, and learn about various pieces of large equipment used in concrete construction. A big THANK YOU to EHMMS Guidance Counselors and Staff for providing real, experiential learning opportunities for students, to help them determine a future career path that fits best for them. Owner, Keith Smith says “It’s always a great day when we can host the younger generation to share about our love and passion for what we do every day. It is our hope that these students will continue their interest in our trade and pursue a career within or related to concrete construction some day.” There are so many opportunities, at all different levels, for individuals who desire a career in our field of construction. Concrete construction, along with many jobs within the skilled trades often provide on the job training, great wages, great benefits, job stability, and room for growth within their profession.
The KDS team is always looking for new ways to give back to our community and in the Spring of 2021, we did just that! Our company teamed up with the local hospital, UPMC Hanover, to figure out what they may need or a way to give back and it brought us to our Spring Baby Item Drive!
After talking with the hospital, we found that new mothers being discharged from the hospital would be a great focus for us. Our company is very family-oriented, so this concept really bloomed with that in mind!
Bringing home a newborn may be overwhelming for some, especially if you are concerned about how you will be able to provide for them while you aren’t able to work. We came up with the idea to put together care packages full of goodies that could be distributed to new mothers in need! We had a goal to put 100 boxes together. While our campaign ran from March until June, we were able to reach 60 total. These packages included diapers, wipes, baby wash, onesies, a bath towel, wash cloths, handmade burp cloths, bibs, a blanket, and a book.
Trust me, it was so great to be able to provide to the hospital and we know the recipients were more than grateful as well.
We were thrilled to try something new this year and find a different way to give back to our community! Stay tuned as we are always up to something throughout the area! While we are always busy on a job site, we are also focused on giving back as well!
Keith D. Smith Concrete Contractor, Inc. is proud to announce the launch of our first ever Pre-Apprenticeship Program for high school students in the 2021-2022 academic year. As the idea has been discussed for some time, we are delighted to bring this program to fruition this year. In the inaugural year, the program was promoted to students from South Western and Hanover Area Senior High School in the beginning of the school year, where individuals had to fill out an application to show interest in their participation.
Our 2021-2022 co-hort consists of six pre apprentice students, all high school juniors and seniors, who have the desire to gain knowledge about and experience in the occupation of concrete construction.
Students will attend monthly sessions that are 2.5 hours in length, where they will learn about various aspects of our daily work, including but not limited to general knowledge about concrete and mix designs, safety in concrete construction, foundations and excavation, slabs, cast in place walls and tilt walls, estimating, and project management. Students will have input on their capstone project at the end of the year, where they can apply all the knowledge and skills they learned and put them to applicable use in some sort of contextual field work or shadowing experience.
Keith Smith, owner of Keith D. Smith Concrete Contractor, Inc. states, “We are excited to offer this program to students as a way to open their eyes to a viable career option where many opportunities for professional growth exist.”
“Salaries are competitive and individuals who work hard and persevere within this career, can without a doubt, live comfortably and support a family. We need to do our part in bringing all the skilled trades back to the forefront of career options available to students graduating from high school, not only for the longevity and success of our own business, but for the stability of our country.”
“We look forward to creating a lasting relationship with these students while teaching them hands on skills related to our area of expertise. Various members of our team will play a part in teaching our pre-apprentice group throughout the year, in a mix of lecture and hands on learning activities.
Stay tuned to learn more about the Keith D. Smith Concrete Contractor, Inc. Pre-apprenticeship Program what our first ever group of pre-apprentice students are up to.”
About UsSeptember 11 is a day that is remembered in many ways, but less than 3 miles from our shop is an event that takes place every year which we are honored to be a part of. The Exchange Club of Hanover hosts the 9/11 Healing Field Memorial where you can walk through a display of American flags, each representing a life that was lost. This year was the 20th Anniversary of this day in history, and they did a wonderful job honoring this occasion.
Each year, our company is honored to be a sponsor for this event and to donate light plants so the community can enjoy this display even after the sun has set. There are many different companies throughout our community that play a big role in all the work that goes into making this such a success; from set up, to monitoring the fields, right down to the clean up on the last day.
The Exchange Club has ceremonies which you can attend, or you can take a moment to walk through the field on your own. This event runs for a week (Friday – Friday) to give everyone a chance to make it out to visit. If this is something you have never experienced or maybe you have younger children who may be just learning of these events, this is such a great opportunity to visit, reflect and visually explain the tragic events of this day in history.
Mom and Dad,
Congratulations today, as you celebrate being in business for 25 years! This is such an honor & a milestone that we are proud to celebrate with you, as we remember the courage you had & the risks you took 25 years ago to turn this little idea into bigger ideas, & eventually a dream into reality.
This is not meant to be a long sappy post, so we we’ll chalk the success of this grand adventure you have been on for 25 years to your “grit” – a combination of your work ethic, desire, commitment, compassion, & so many other positive attributes that define you; as individuals, as a couple, as well as your business. Your leadership is second to none. You have taken pride in this business & have grown leaps & bounds one success after another due to your consistent quality of work & respectable customer service. Through the years, you have supported your community, along with providing so many with opportunities & stability through employment. We could go on & on, but we are just so very grateful for your genuine personalities & generous hearts that have grown this company bigger than we ever thought possible.
To two parents who have always & still continue to do it all, who never gave up on their goals or each other, who always remembered importance of family through the most hectic of days, who always made our house a home & who weren’t afraid to take risks & turn them into reality….we’re so grateful for the example you have set.
Wishing Keith Smith Concrete many more years of happiness & success as we stand by your side! Words cannot express the gratitude & pride we have every day, calling you our parents! We love you!
Love,
Your biggest fans:
Benjamin & Abigail
Jessica, Savannah, McKenna, & Mila
Stuart, Lexie, Lilah, & Colson
In April, the KDS Concrete crew took on a 20,000 sqft. building addition project at Feesers Cold Storage in Harrisburg, PA. Feesers is installing a new cooler addition to house more product at their existing facility and our team was tasked with all the concrete needs for this project. Our crews tied all the rebar, installed all the footers, framed and poured all the foundation walls with integral piers, set all the anchor bolts, and prepped, placed, and finished the slab on grade. One unique characteristic of the project is the slab on grade was an extended joint floor with only three saw cuts installed in the entire building. Less saw cuts equates to less maintenance costs for the owner over the serviceable lifetime of the project. KDS Concrete completed the entire scope of this fast track project in one month.
For the past three months, KDS Concrete has been building our first full package tilt wall project. Previously we have assisted customers pour tilt panels, but have never framed or erected the panels after they are poured. We were excited to take on this challenge as it was close to home and presented us new learning experiences. It consisted of 16” thick insulated tilt up panels with thin brick and block veneers. The veneers were laid out in a brick pattern and cast while laying horizontal before being erected. These pictures show the process of bringing this project to life. Check back to see how the completion of the project progresses. As always we thank our employees who had a hand in building this project. It takes their loyalty and dedication to make all of our jobs a success.
Here is the first pour for our third screed machine!
A big thank you to everyone on the KDS Team! It is your hard work and dedication that make this possible!
Here are some photos of a project we completed in late 2017. This was a warehouse project for an excellent new client! Thank you to all employees involved for their hard work, dedication and most important – quality. Keep it up in 2018!
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Keith D. Smith Concrete prepped, placed and finished a concrete pavilion pad for the Manheim park.
